Chapter 156

“Finally, it has come.”

Bo Zul, who had been striving to grasp the movements of the world in Yiyang, shed a cold sweat upon hearing the news that Chang-ran had arrived at Gangnyeong Castle.

In Bo Zul’s eyes, the last war was not a difficult fight.

Frankly speaking, although the Han Dynasty had exerted its full strength at the time, its main forces were deployed on the front lines against Cao Wei.

Their proud top-tier generals were all mobilized against Cao Wei, while second-tier generals were sent to face Eastern Wu.

Ban Jun, Wei Yan, and Feng Shu were considered top talents in the mid to late period, but in Bo Zul’s view, that was it.

In hindsight, Lu Xun indeed crushed them. As a result, their reputation in the world was decent, but they were not considered banner figures representing a nation.

Thus, it was hard to see Bo Zul’s perception as merely his personal opinion.

But the name Chang-ran was different.

‘A true powerhouse of Shu, one of their greatest strengths.’

Among the people, Shu’s top generals were regarded as divine beings capable of shaking heaven and earth.

Guan Yu of Huaxia, Zhang Fei of Wanren, Ma Chao of Mingzhen, and General Chang-ran.

Eastern Wu had already suffered a bitter defeat at their hands, and that was only five years ago.

‘But now is different from then.’

At that time, the mainstream opinion was that Chang-ran was a rising star with considerable talent.

She had performed brilliantly in the Hanzhong campaign, but since it was a story from such a distant place, people thought there might be some exaggeration. Moreover, the underlying perception of her being a woman was also present.

But now, as Bo Zul thought, Eastern Wu no longer underestimated her.

“Where has General Xu Sheng reached?”

Bo Zul’s subordinate, You Xiao, answered his question.

“He will arrive tomorrow.”

“That won’t be too late.”

Upon hearing Zhuge Jin’s order to prepare for war, Bo Zul immediately summoned Xu Sheng.

The current weakness of Eastern Wu is that its troops are scattered. Blocking at Jingling County would be ideal, but in Bo Zul’s view, that was too optimistic.

‘Chang-ran will bypass Jingling County.’

Bo Zul wasn’t the only one who thought so. Zhu Yan and Zhuge Jin also didn’t expect Chang-ran to be fixated on Jingling County.

Yet, they stayed in Jingling County because, among the given options, it was the best choice.

‘Field battles are suicidal.’

They would engage in a frontal battle on water, but fighting Chang-ran on land was madness.

Even the mighty generals of Cao Wei had been defeated multiple times by Chang-ran and the Lanling Army. With Eastern Wu’s severe lack of cavalry, there was no way to stop them. Unless Lu Xun came.

Jingling County isn’t bad for defense. With water at their backs, they wouldn’t be attacked from all sides, and in the worst case, they could cross the river to escape.

With Zhu Yan defending, Jingling County wouldn’t fall.

However, this also meant that 10,000 troops would be trapped in Jingling County.

‘Jingling County’s limit is holding the enemy’s forces.’

Chang-ran couldn’t completely ignore Jingling County. The safety of supply lines was an issue, and if Jingling County were left open, Eastern Wu would have too many options for counterattacks.

At least 10,000, or generously 20,000 troops would be stationed in Jingling County.

‘In the end, the enemy’s forces will also be divided.’

If Zhu Yan holds the Shu forces in Jingling County, and Zhuge Jin and Quan Zong tie down the Shu forces heading to Wuling, the enemy’s forces would be halved.

“With 30,000, we can hold Hegu.”

Zhu Huan is stationed at Hegu.

And Bo Zul himself, along with Xu Sheng, who will soon join as reinforcements.

If the three of them combine their wisdom and courage, even Chang-ran wouldn’t dare set foot in Hegu.

“Liu Bei, Zhuge Liang, Chang-ran, you underestimated us too much. If you wanted to reclaim Jing Province, you should have brought your entire fleet. Trying to pressure Cao Wei while being half-hearted will ruin everything.”

As Bo Zul expected, Chang-ran sent Wei Yan and Yi Yan with 5,000 troops each to blockade Gong’an and Jingling.

Around the same time Chang-ran and the Shu army departed from Gangnyeong Castle, Xu Sheng arrived in Yiyang.

“General Xu Sheng! Welcome.”

“General Bo, you’ve waited long.”

In terms of rank, Bo Zul was higher than Xu Sheng, but Bo Zul showed respect to Xu Sheng as a sign of mutual respect. It was a gesture of reverence for Xu Sheng’s bravery, who would later be included among the Twelve Tiger Generals of Jiangdong.

Unlike Shu, which was filled with fierce generals, and Wei, which still had generals like Xu Huang, Zhang Pei, and Zhao Jin, Eastern Wu lacked such figures.

Though the era where a single general could turn the tide of battle had passed, the presence of a fierce general still held value. Just knowing they were fighting alongside them boosted the soldiers’ morale.

Zheng Feng, whom Lu Xun had personally recruited from Ban Zhang’s private troops, had yet to make a name for himself. Currently, the top generals of Eastern Wu were usually considered to be Ban Zhang and Xu Sheng.

Thus, Bo Zul waited for Xu Sheng. In case of emergency, he might need to take the vanguard himself, relying on his own bravery to face Chang-ran.

“No. I heard that the Governor of Jing Province and General Zhengbei are holding the line well. If we head to Hegu and join forces with the Governor of Hegu to stop Chang-ran, our nation’s rising momentum will be known throughout the land.”

The distance from Yiyang to Hegu was almost twice that from Gangnyeong Castle to Hegu, but Bo Zul wasn’t worried.

Sun Shao, who was already at Lukou, had brought a fleet close by. If they hurried up the river, they wouldn’t be far behind Chang-ran’s arrival at Hegu.

“By now, the Shu army should have just departed from Gangnyeong.”

Bo Zul’s analysis was sharp.

And according to his analysis, Chang-ran would face a heavily fortified Hegu with over 15,000 troops.

At first, Bo Zul had also been overwhelmed by Liu Bei’s declaration of war and Chang-ran’s reputation, but now he had fully regained his composure.

Finally, after joining forces with Sun Shao’s naval forces, Bo Zul set off for Hegu along the river.

Just like when he was promoted to General of the Right and pacified Wuling with Quan Zong, everything was proceeding as Bo Zul had anticipated.

Or so it seemed.

“General!”

A messenger from a small boat approaching the Eastern Wu fleet was pale. Despite the sun not yet fully rising, his face was drenched in sweat.

Seeing this, Bo Zul instinctively sensed that something was wrong.

“Report quickly.”

With Sun Shao and Xu Sheng present, Bo Zul urged the messenger. The messenger shouted in a frantic voice.

“Hegu is under attack!”

Bo Zul’s plan wasn’t wrong. While the Shu forces were divided, the Wu forces would unite.

Wuling-Jingling-Hegu. The plan was to deal with the dispersed Shu forces using terrain and fortresses.

Even if military control over Xingnan weakened due to troop dispersion, pushing back the Shu forces would allow for recovery.

However, Bo Zul’s plan was flawed from the premise.

The Shu army’s marching speed far exceeded Bo Zul’s expectations.

Had Bo Zul underestimated them? Not really. In fact, Bo Zul had set their marching speed higher than the average. Yet, the Shu army reached Hegu much earlier than Bo Zul had initially calculated.

“No, how, already……”

Bo Zul stammered at the shocking report.

Even if they were cavalry-heavy, the Lanling Army had infantry, and other troops were with them. How could they have arrived so soon!

“If Hegu falls, our troops will have nowhere to land.”

“Even if there were, they would have stationed troops there. Considering their Yuan Rong and Qiang Nu, even a small force can’t be ignored.”

Sun Shao and Xu Sheng also stiffened and hurriedly spoke.

Amidst the shaken surroundings, Bo Zul, thinking that he must not waver at such a time, regained his composure and calmed them.

“Stay calm. Hegu is under attack, but it hasn’t fallen yet. And even if we panic, we can’t speed up the boats.”

Rowing is hard labor. It’s no wonder slaves were used as oarsmen, east or west.

Even if soldiers were used as oarsmen in their anxiety, what would happen afterward? Exhausted soldiers wouldn’t be able to fight properly.

“Messenger.”

At Bo Zul’s call, the messenger prostrated and answered.

“Yes, yes, General.”

“Hegu hasn’t fallen yet. How is Governor Zhu’s defense? How is the morale of the troops? Can they hold Hegu until we arrive?”

“The morale at Hegu is extremely high.”

The unexpected answer surprised Bo Zul. If the speed was beyond his expectations, the troops at Hegu should have been panicked.

Moreover, the enemy commander was none other than Chang-ran. Maintaining normal morale alone was impressive, but to say it was extremely high?

Sun Shao and Xu Sheng also looked at the messenger in confusion.

“Then why did you come here so anxiously?”

“Although our morale is high, the importance of Hegu has increased significantly.”

What kind of riddle was that? Xu Sheng was about to shout when the messenger mentioned a name no one had expected.

“His Highness the Crown Prince is here!”